


A Certain Glow

by NoctIsFishing



Series: Noct Writes Taiora Week 2020 [4]
Category: Digimon Adventure, Digimon Adventure tri.
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Light Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:49:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26899222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoctIsFishing/pseuds/NoctIsFishing
Summary: After the end of the final battle, Taichi's mind was shadowed by everything that happened to him. He knows he'll need time to process it all, but after talking to Sora, he begins to see the dawn of a new day.An added scene toward the end of tri. Part 6 (Future).Written for Taiora Week.(Day 04: Emblem)
Relationships: Takenouchi Sora/Yagami Taichi | Tai Kamiya
Series: Noct Writes Taiora Week 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1958011
Comments: 3
Kudos: 7





	A Certain Glow

_Day 04 - Emblem_  
_(tri. divergence, High School Year 3)_

It felt like a lifetime since Taichi saw the sun rise in the sky. The water on the beach before him and the other Chosen Children began to glisten from the sunlight. No longer was the sky shrouded in darkness; the clouds were on their way to disappearing into the brightening blue as a rainbow began to form.

Everyone was exhausted. Buildings were destroyed. Not everyone came out alive.

But the battle was over. Daisuke and the others had been found and returned to the Real World, and Taichi and his team had saved their homeland once again.

The deep silence within the group was broken by the squeaks of everyone's Digimon partners bouncing toward them. One by one, each Digimon flew into their own human's arms to be cuddled, the peaceful comfort found between human and Digimon partners the longer they were together.

Koromon had stopped in front of Taichi, looking up at him with a worn expression.

"I'm hungry," Koromon said weakly.

Taichi cracked a small smile as he looked down toward his partner. After everything that had happened - the Digimon losing their memories; Taichi nearly losing his life, but ending up finding the missing Chosen Children, only to be forced to say goodbye to Nishijima-sensei…

...and even after he DNA digivolved to Omegamon, all Koromon wanted was a bite to eat.

Taichi picked up his partner and held him tightly, wishing that he could think as simply as Koromon and not have the weight of emotions that he still needed to process.

As the sun rose higher into the sky, everyone decided it was time to part ways. It was cathartic to be with eight of his friends - the only eight he knew would understand what they went through - but Taichi recognized that everyone wanted time alone with their partners.

Yamato and Tsunomon were the first to leave. Hikari had convinced Meiko to join her, Tailmon, Takeru, and Tokomon on their walk home. Jou with Bukamon and Koushiro with Mochimon went their own separate ways.

Sora stood a few feet away from Taichi, looking across the shoreline with Pyocomon resting soundly in her arms.

"I'll call you," Sora said quietly as she smiled at Mimi, who gave her a hug before running to Taichi and hugged him too.

With Mimi and Tanemon gone, Taichi and Sora were the only two left.

Taichi recognized the sullen expression on Sora's face. Even behind that smile she gave Mimi, he knew there was something that was troubling her. But he wasn't sure if she was going to tell him what it was.

"Hey, Sora…" he started, causing her to turn her head, but Koromon's loud yawn interrupted what he wanted to say next.

"Let's find a comfortable spot for them to rest," Sora decided, with Pyocomon slowly fidgeting with her eyes closed.

Taichi and Sora walked to the nearby park where they found a grassy lawn near a shaded tree for their Digimon to sleep. As Taichi brushed his palm against Koromon's relaxed face, he smiled again and stood up to let Koromon be.

He watched Sora kneeling in front of Pyocomon doing the same thing, except when she stood up with her back facing him, he noticed hushed gasps that could have only come from her, and her shoulders began to tremble.

"What's wrong…?" Taichi lifted his hand to reach for her shoulder. But before he could, Sora turned and threw her arms around him, holding him tightly with her face hidden in the front of his shirt.

"I tried so hard to convince myself that you were still alive," she whispered with a quiver. "I'm so glad that you are… Thank goodness…"

Taichi was startled, to say the least. He had been so used to seeing her brush off her own feelings enough to hide them from everyone else.

He never thought he'd ever see her cry for him.

"Sora…" was all he could say. He found himself at a loss of what to do whenever she got emotional, but he hated seeing her like this. Pulling her close, he wrapped his arm around her and held her close with his other hand cradling the back of her head.

He thought back to the moment before he fell into the crevice during the battle and blacked out, followed by what happened when he came to and discovered Nishijima-san who ended up in the same place. The moment that Dark Gennai revealed that only one of them could escape that place alive, Taichi knew that he had to find a way to save everyone.

Even if it meant sacrificing himself.

"I was terrified," he told Sora, holding her as she quietly sobbed. "I wanted to save Meiko and her partner. I wanted everyone to stay out of harm's way from that fight. That's why I ran."

"Baka," Sora said, sniffling. "You didn't have to run after them, only to get caught in the crossfire. But…"

She looked up at him, revealing her tear-stained cheeks and her eyes puffy, which he was certain was also from fatigue.

"...You must have been terrified coming back here, too. You had to fight through that, even when you knew there was a bigger fight here in the Real World... It couldn't have been easy. Doing what you needed to do even when you're terrified: that's why you bear the Crest of Courage, right?"

Taichi felt his eyes begin to water. Even before telling her the details, she gave him the perspective in the words that he needed to hear.

It was his turn to cry. Sora ran her hand slowly up and down his back as he let his tears stream down his chin and onto her shoulder. He needed to let that out, to grieve over the weight of his choices and the losses he had to bear.

He was glad to have Sora there for him.

"Taichi…" he'd heard Koromon say. Looking toward the tree, Taichi saw that Koromon and Pyocomon had opened their eyes and were watching their human partners in sadness.

But Taichi took one deep breath and sighed. His tears stopped rolling, and he felt a little bit lighter.

"You okay, Taichi?" Sora asked him when they pulled apart.

"I am," he replied, cracking a smile. "Thanks."

There was a certain glow to the smile she gave him back. Even as the rays of sunlight shimmered on her cheeks and on her lashes from her tears.

It made him realize something.

"You know, Sora, what you said about my crest… I could say the same about yours."

"Really?"

"Staring at the threat of danger, terrified, but doing it to protect the ones you care about. That's love. That's why you bear that crest."

There was no doubt that the moments in the Digital World after the reboot sprung into her mind. He remembered how she tried to fight off dark Gennai on her own, and jumped onto Mugendramon for Piyomon.

Watching her eyebrows furrow as she ran the memories in her head, then seeing her lower lip tremble - he wondered just how hard it was for her, too.

"Sora."

"Hmm?" she said, blinking at him as she appeared to return to the present.

Taichi brushed his thumb against her cheek to wipe her tears away. They were both in the present now. It would take time for them to fully process the last few days, but Taichi realized he couldn't have done it without his own strength.

And it was Sora who helped him realize it.

"I'm glad you're here with me," Taichi said, taking her hand.

Sora's eyes fell from his gaze to their hands, suddenly expressionless. Taichi began to wonder if he made a mistake, and he could feel his face burning.

"Well, you know-" he added, recognizing that he was stammering his words but he couldn't stop. "I mean- um…"

"I'm glad you're here with me, too," Sora replied, closing her hand around his. When Taichi looked at her again, she was looking up at him, smiling in her radiance.

He hoped that Sora realized her own strength, too.

"Taichi," Koromon called.

"Sora," said Pyocomon.

Taichi looked down to see both Digimon standing at their feet.

"Can we eat now, Taichi?"

"I wanna eat, too, Sora."

"Let's go have some breakfast, then," said Taichi.

"I'm sure we all need it," added Sora.

Koromon jumped up to Taichi who carried him with one arm. Pyocomon did the same with Sora. The four of them went on their way to find breakfast, with Taichi and Sora walking side-by-side, never letting go of each others' hands.

**Author's Note:**

> The theme is "emblem" and immediately I thought to their crests of courage (Taichi) and love (Sora) so in this fic they're written more about how they represent them respectively. There was much left to explore emotionally in this part of the movie (and arguably in the whole series) so that's where I went.
> 
> I had also finished watching Kizuna for the third time and that wrecked me so I needed to write something cathartic. lol.
> 
> Thanks for reading and leaving comments! Tomorrow we rewind and "reboot"! (not in the tri context ;) ) 'til the next fic xoxo


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